Founder member of the Tour De Force and participant in 2006, 2010 - again in 2012!

Phil Deeker will be the Tour de Force's lead cyclist. He will be in charge of the route and will give daily briefings about each stage. There is nothing about the Tour de France that Phil doesn't know!

Motto: Everything is relative.
Best cycling moment: Today's ride.
Has also travelled on two wheels: To and from work (15 hilly miles each way) for 10 years in ALL weather.ride.ride.
Worst cycling moment: Trying to control screamering teeth (well, they were definitely doing more than chattering) on a freezing descent off Mt Ventoux in early April. In fact, most of my body was screamering.

Sarah Perry will be organising the event from start to finish. She will also be with you all in France, managing logistics, being sad that she is not cycling, and making sure that everything goes smoothly and everyone has a fantastic time on tour!

Motto: Keep calm and carry on.
Best cycling moment: Perfect, perfect weather at the top of Mt Ventoux.
Has also travelled on two wheels: In China, Cuba, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Russia, Vietnam… the list goes on!
Worst cycling moment: Riding into a head wind the entire way up the Outer Hebrides.

Tracy Norris will be helping Sarah with pre event organisation and a lot of you will be speaking to her during the sign up process. She may well also appear at some point during the event to cycle a stage or two!

Motto: Use it or lose it
Best cycling moment: Foul weather on the top of Galibier - but who cares?
Has also travelled on two wheels: From Central to South East Asia, Geneva to Nice and all over Scotland's mountainbike trails
Worst cycling moment: Somewhere between Geneva and Nice in pouring rain - quote of the holiday: "this is not good"

Coding, coding and coding - it used to be Coffee, Cycling, Camping and then Coding!

Mark Harding is a 5 times Etape Du Tour participant, several Silver time standards. Bagged most of the cols in the Alps and Pyrenees. Ridden most Sportives in the UK through his previous business, Cyclosport.org.

Mark will be raising money for WWMT and taking part in Tour Taster 5, the Eastern Heights which includes the very difficult Etape Du Tour stage to La Toussuire.

Too old for this, too heavy for this, too slow for this...........Oh, and just too stupid to say  no!!! ... :-)) Going to be a massive challenge and the hardest ride I've ever done, but Oh how much am I looking forward to it!

Champing at the bit to start the training (so scared I've already started!)...and meet up with all those taking part....going to be fun (I think!!!???).......and horrid at times I'm sure!.

Anyone venturing down to the West Country always welcome to come and ride with our club...hope to see many of you at the April training weekend

:-)....check out our club site www.yogicycling.com ....just turn up and you'll be made welcome...we ride for FUN

Roll on June 2012

:-))

How did this happen?...  A moment's weakness...

...and you find yourself signed up as a lifer without really having thought it through!!

Actually, I can't wait!  It's going to be an epic challenge, an incredible journey, an awesome adventure and a great bunch of people to share it with.

I'm a relative newbie to the world of road cycling, I only started riding again regularly in May 2010 following a brief flirtation with cycling for a one-off go at triathlon.  Having not owned a 'racing bike' since I was a teenager, now my own teenage kids reliably inform me I have crossed into the world of the MAMIL (Middle Aged Man in Lycra!). 

I ride with the YOGi cycling club in the sometimes sunny but always beautiful SouthWest - www.yogicycling.com  If you find yourself down in our neck of the woods be sure to get in touch and if you can make the April training weekend we promise you'll have a great time with our friendly club!

I'd class myself as a bit of a weekend warrior, with a few 100+ mile sportives under my belt in 2011, so it's a massive leap to this...BRING IT ON!

If you'd like to sponsor me: http://www.bmycharity.com/madmancycling

Hi Guys,

I’m a student in my final year studying Building Surveying and the Environment at Plymouth University. Home for me is Hexham in Northumberland (about half hour from Newcastle, with great riding and fantastic views!), bit of a long way from home but I loved every minute of it, partly down to finding the YOGi Cycling Club, with some great rides and social outings! 

I have in the past taken part in other sports including hockey and a bit of running but have always found cycling to be the best and kept coming back. I do follow the football and big supporter of Toon Army, Haway the lads! (fantastic start to the season boys!)

Other hobbies, (when not studying of course!) include a bit of photography, walking (home is in the middle of nowhere!) and I’m a keen angler as well.

I've got my place as a ‘lifer’ so I’m sure I will come across those of you who you are riding part and all of the tour.   

Those of you who are looking to support me and therefore the William Wates Memorial Trust, I've set up a few web pages to help me get some fundraising underway. Firstly I’ve got a page with Bmycharity, this is simply a way in which you can leave a donation and also keep a track on how my fundraising is going!

http://www.bmycharity.com/JamesThompsonTDF2012

Secondly I've set a page up with easy fundraising. This does not cost you anything to use it other than a few extra mins when you’re going to buy things online. There are hundreds of companies listed including the likes of Amazon, wiggle, ebay, tesco, electric/gas suppliers, and insurance companies. The list is massive. When you place and order or buy a policy each company will donate a % of what your buy to my cause it's as simple as that. Please take a minute to take a look at the link below.

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/jamesthompson/?u=4K9ALM

If the other guys riding want to set up an easyfundrasing page then please use the link below as it shows I have reffered you and I get a little bit more money for it! 

http://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/referral/42959

Spent 10 years racing sports cars and now a 'Born again cyclist'

Founder member of 3 B's Cyling Team

JOGLE in summer of 2011 , various sportives and some CAT 4 racing in the Surrey League.

Other hobbies include Golf , Fishing , Game Shooting and Football ( season ticket holder at Chelsea )

Married to Sweetheart  with 3 kids : 20,19 & 10

Live in Virginia Water , Surrey

Ambition to race in the RAM ( maybe in 2013 when I will be 50 )

Email  austin.reynolds@austinreynolds.co.uk if you want to meet up for a ride in the Surrey Hills !

Charity donations please via www.bmycharity.com/austinreynolds

Signed up as a Lifer.

Been cycling for 20+ years now.  Completed the inaugeral Ride Across Britain with James Cracknell and 400 or so others in 2010.  Was intending to do RAB again in 2012 but found TdF instead and I was sold!  I've done a bit of cycling in the high alps based out of Briancon, but really looking forward to my first time in the Pyrenees.

This is a 40th birthday present to myself - doing TT5 - hopefully this will lead to being a lifer before I am 50!!

Have cycled for around 5 years; did the alpenbrevet a couple of years ago, and did Mont Ventoux last summer. However, this is definitely a big step up!

The thought of those final two days in the alps is definitely keeping me motivated during the current cold weather! I have an awesome 14% hill at the end of my road which I spend hours slogging up and down - the neighbours think I am crazy! 

Looking forward to meeting everyone in July. Bring it on :)

I've got a place as a LIFER for the Tour de Force 2012!

That means that I have a place to take on the staggering challenge of riding the entire route of next year's Tour de France a week in advance of the pro's. There are only a limited number of places for 'lifers' and I'm proud to have one of them!

What qualifies me for this act of lunacy?

Quite simply; nothing: I'm not!

Actually, of course, I have done a bit of cycling; commuting and the occasional sportive. The usual smattering of those has been in the UK (such as the Hilly Hundred, the Magnificat and the Dragon Ride) and some in Europe (such as La Marmotte  and the 2010 Étape du Tour).

We however have to do 20 stages in 22 days and the only multi-day events I've done are The Tour of Ireland in 2008 and some cycle touring... so some training is definitely called for.

My working life takes me in two very different directions: that of a Spinning® instructor and I'm also as professional singer.

As a Spinning® instructor I imagine that the punters in my classes at http://www.h2bikerun.co.uk   and http://www.pedalstudio.co.uk might be involved in the training process somewhere along the line... ;-)

As a performer much of my time is spent with a German band called Gregorian. We dress up as monks in crushed velvet habits & sing pop songs in the style of chant...the usual sort of thing...;-) http://www.gregorian.de/

One of the good aspects of being a touring musician is that you have lots of free time....to go out on training rides!

There are regular updates on both my training & touring on my facebook page:http://www.facebook.com/RichardridestheTdF2012

This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and what makes it really worthwhile: in the process we'll be raising money for the William Wates Memorial Trust http://www.wwmt.org/

As I know you'll all think I'm mad, please convert those thoughts to £s, €s or $s and support this wonderful cause! Even that is really easy by donating via: http://www.bmycharity.com/RichardridestheTourdeForce2012

I also have an Easy Fund raising Page...to help add a little more to WWMT each time that you shop online: http://easyfundraising.org.uk/d/9d91e1s

Thanks in advance for all of your support...moral, financial et al! I need it all!!!

After always having played competitive sport since I was at school - but found my knees giving up on me on the football pitch - cycling seemed a natural progression.

I am a member of Amersham Cycling Club and after having done various UK sportives and Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders. A version of the Tour of France seems a natural progression. Although after really specialising in racing on flat tracks and time-trialling - why I have picked to do the Pyrennean Stages is a mystery!

I am looking forward to spending time with like minded individuals over the mountains and down into Paris! 

I'm 50 in 2012, signing up for this indicates one hell of a mid-life crisis!

I'll be taking part in TT10 from Pau to Paris and I see this as probably the biggest challenge of my life. Looking forward to it immensely.

I originally started riding on a Mountain Bike 17 years or so ago but later bought a road bike to cycle to work 30 miles a day to keep fit 10 years ago. Ive completed many sportives since and  Ive completed the BHF South Downs Way 100 miles in a day 3 or 4 times. The biggest challenge so far for me was the Tour of Wessex, a 3 day back to back Sportive 3 years ago which I just finished in the time allocated. Im looking forward to riding the Tour though as Ive never ridden on the continent although looking at some of those mountain stages in the Pyrenees it may put me off for life!

Im open to sharing the training pain with fellow Tour riders if any of you live in Hampshire or the Surrey/Sussex Borders. I'll also be riding the Cornwall Tor again this year as well as the Tour of Wessex if anyone would like to share the experience. The Tor is one of the hardest sportives in the country.

Look forward to meeting you all.

Got my lifer position!

I have cycled for a few years now, my introduction came in the shape of Land's End to John O'Groats. Since then I have completed sportives and charity rides. I am not a member of a club (yet), but that may change.

In 2010 I headed over to the Pyrenees (Tourmalet stages) to watch Lance's final Tour, from the moment I entered the mountain range I fell in love with it. I cannot wait to cycle these stages, take in the scenery, and tackle the climbs!

It is a privilege to be raising funds for WWMT, so please feel free to sponsor me: http://www.bmycharity.com/richardgreen

I am really looking forward to meeting all the other riders and preparing for the challenges ahead. 

Hello

I am a lifelong runner,any distances from 5k to 56 miles.Started commuting on a bike and decided I liked it so I bought an entry level road bike for my 50th and have grown to enjoy cycling as well over the past  5 years.

Rode a Raid Pyreneean last year for a challenge and  really "enjoyed" it. So much so I upgraded my bike and set about looking for a new adventure/challege and came across the TDF 2012..Really pleased to have got the last Lifer place.

 I live in South Manchester (It's Man United not the other lot)  on the borders of the Peak District and the Cheshire plain which is a  great contrast for training and riding. 

Looking forward to meeting you all in June if not before.

I've been riding for about a year and a half and enjoy signing myself up for the near impossible and so have chosen to join TdF for stages 11-20. Panicking quite a lot and think I need to up the training regime

You know one of those 'impulse' things you do in life.....well this is one of them for me!!

The last cycling impulse moment was earlier this year when I thought it would be a good idea to go over to Belgium to spend 2 days in the company of Geraint Thomas of Sky Procycling Team, being led around some of the key climbs and cobbles of the Tour de Flanders - wow what an experience that was!

I am not a member of any cycling clubs, don't do any racing so probably classed as a 'weekend warrior'! All I know is I have a lot of work to put in between now and June to ensure I make it through the first 4 stages and prologue. 

Feel free to sponsor me here http://www.bmycharity.com/adamfearn

Amateur cyclist who works in London and lives in Redhill, Surrey. Rode part of the 2010 Tour de Force as my first serious cycling challenge and loved it.

Have been trying my legs at road racing since then and now signed up as a Lifer for the 2012 TdF.

In an attempt to graduate to the twenty-first century, I have set up a Twitter account https://twitter.com/#!/OliverGin1 and a training blog http://ollyridesthetour.wordpress.com/ which I hope are of some use!

Ive been commuting to work for 5 years, but only started riding more seriously this year. This is by far the biggest cycling challenge I will have done, and cant wait to get up those mountains next July! Taking part with 6 other colleagues from work and we are doing TT5, stages 7-11. Looking forward to meeting some of you in the run up, and good luck to everyone involved!

 What am I thinking!

Lover of all things bicycle, it's going to be a big step from just watching or reading about Le Tour to actually following part of it's course...and under my own power no less!

My main reason for signing up was just that...to get up off my lazy backside and make the effort to see and feel what this ultimate of sporting events is all about...and where better to see all that than in the Pyrenees and on the Champs Elysee.

Apart from a dozen or more London-to-Brightons, I have completed the Tour of the Black Mountains (90 mile) in 2009 and the Castle100 (100 mile) in May this year....so this will be my first really big step into the realms of serious multi-day mileage...must remember to invest in some decent bibshorts come to think of it.

But I relish the challenge and seriously cannot wait to get it all underway now!

http://www.bmycharity.com/kieranontour

 signed up as "Lifer" counting the days,will be a fantastic experience.

Have been on or a round bikes for as long as I can remember completed numerous etapes and various other sportives including Tour of Flanders,London to Paris which backed onto Ride Across Britian this summer approx 1800miles in 14days and rained almost ever day but was still great.

Hope to meet up with fellow participants over the coming months, Live in Ayshire,Scotland if any one local please contact and we can join up for a ride.

Email : johngoldie@speednetscotland.net

For any donations, because thats what it's about please use:

http://www.bmycharity.com/johngoldie

Many thanks

 John

I am a friend of Austin's (I'm the fat one in his blog photos) and will be joining him for the last six stages of Le Tour, together with Mike O'Sullivan.

I used to be a MTBer, but hit the road a few years ago. I have ridden off-road in Europe and USA & on road have completed LeJOG a couple of times, as well as numerous Coast to Coasts etc.

I love watching Le Tour each year on TV and when Austin suggested cheese, wine and a chance to ride the same roads as the pros, it was an easy decision!

I work for the Financial Times in London and live in Canterbury. Too far to cycle each day, I have a bike with a motor for that job.

The Tour de France has always been a fascination for me. How men can race each day, so hard over such long distances has always left me wondering.

The offer to take on some of the stages and help raise awareness and support for the William Wates Memorial Trust was a chance not to be overlooked. The WWMT fund opportunities for children with the aim of steering them into a more fulfilling and prosperous life. Education through experience is how I like to see it.

For me, this is going to be an experience of a lifetime and I hope I'll be able to do justice to the organisers and Trust in being a solid team member and raising enough support for the Trust.

Well it seemed a good idea at the time!

Been riding for four or five years and have done the coast to coast and JOGLE and numerous sportives in that time, but mainly just love riding my bike.

Most of my riding is in the Surrey Hills, but I am sure that won't prepare me for Tour De Force.

Right from being small I always been captivated by cycling and riding my bike. I vividly remember the first time without stabalisers and my first "racer". Then life got in the way and I didn't ride for decades. I got the bug again 4 years ago when a group from work entered London to Brighton, still the scariest ride I've done. I enjoyed the training and made it over Ditchling high on caffine gels and the sense of acheivement.

That gave me permission to get a proper bike, fitted by Cyclefit, and since then I've not looked back and active cycling is integral to my life. I completed a life changing LeJog in 2009 (when I first met Sarah the TdForce organiser), a tack free Caledonian Etape, 2010's  Etape de Tour ending up on on Tourmalet and Lowestoft to Dingle with Moneyspinners in 2010. This year I tackled 6 stages of the Gran Corsa D'Italia and managed silver in the Marmotte.

So, 2012 brings training and the Mountain section on LeTour de Force. I love the mountains, sometimes they spit you out disheartened and tired. Sometimes I triumph and can't wait to do them again. I'm not fast but I'm organised and determined.

I ride to raise money for charity, to put something back. I ride because, to paraphrase Laurent Fignon, cycling is one of the most reliable ways of inspiring happiness and building self knowledge. On the bike I'm a cyclist, everything else in life is secondary.

I must be mad!! Encouragment from Mark Pittachio made me believe I can do TT10 but I'm not so sure now!!

Glad to see (I think) that so many others are as worried about the challenge ahead. hopefully the training alone will reduce my sizeable frame!

I am an Independent Financial Adviser based in Windsor, where I also live.

Just upgrading from my BMX as apparently that isn't up to the job and really looking forward to it!

Have competed all my life in various sports including 20 years in Triathlons. Retired now but still organise the odd race. Have raised money for charities in the past by running marathons . I am a director of a financial services company in Hampshire giving Independent advice and sponsor local football teams ,putting money back into the local sporting community.

Cycle for fun and to stay fit , my fitness/pilates coach calls me "The 3 G's' because she can't remember my name , One week it's George, the next Greg , and may be Glen if I wear a name badge.

Why Tour De Force, always want a challenge and you only live once and something to talk about over dinner.    

Hello. I hail from Kerry in Ireland and I am living in Edinburgh about three years. I took up cycling soon after the move to Scotland as a means to stay fit after a lifetime of chasing a bag of air around a field via Gaelic Football in Ireland.

Apart from semi-regular spins in all directions from Edinburgh, I have been through the Italian and Swiss Alps, the Pyrenees and most recently cycled from Bucharest to Athens over 10 days. I like one-day events as well and I have done the Etape Caledonia as well of several of the An Post tour series in Ireland  this year.

I especially enjoy big climbs and I have crossed off a handful of the tour climbs so far and I am looking forward to the challenge of the climbing in the Tour de Force.

I have signed up for stages 11 to 20 but if I could take more time off work I would love to have a crack at the whole thing, maybe next time. Hope to meet some great people during the Tour de Force and can't wait to get started.

When you put a Rugby Back Row Forward on a bike the results rarely look pretty!!  Funnily enough the downhills and the flat are my preferred cycling territory too - but 5 stages in the Jura and the Alps are what lie ahead and I am hugely looking forward to it, honest!

www.bmycharity.com/philipsudell

www.sudell.me.uk/tourdeforce

Good day fellow Riders,

I finally managed to HTFU, get my (slightly padded) arse into gear and get up to speed with the bloggin' crew (that would be you lot - or some of you so far).

I am uber-happy at the thought of meeting all you deligent cycle-maniacs on the Tour and hope there's some other female Lifers out there who are going to get their pages up so we can make like a bloggin' peloton or somefink.

I was the female Lifer of the 2010 TDF and have lots of helpful tips - like don't panic too much as no matter how 'fit' you are or how much training you do, it'll never be enough and it all comes down to mind over matter in the end. Best to enjoy the pretty countryside and concentrate on the fact that Sarah and the awesome back-up crew have always you your back (and most importantly delicious snacks to hand) at every step of the way.

I haven't been on my bike since the end of the TDF 2010 and am not too worried about it. I'm currently living in Malaysia and with the exeption of a week or two back in the UK (where my bike is) i'm largely just in the gym a few times a week working on strength. Ladies, it gets painful on the arms on the decents - work on the arms - work on the arms - and the hands - my god yes the hands that have to squeeze brakes for long periods of time - worse than legs I promise! - it's all coming back to me now...

Well, I shall try and figure out the next few steps of setting all this up and leave with a little line to say: how amazing and life changing this experience is, both for the Rider and for the kids that the WWMT helps fix up (with good things not actual 'fixes').

Also adding a 'hurruh' just because it's all so exciting :D

DBC x